Fueled with JENergy.

this one's for him.


it's funny how everything "food related" reminds me of my pops.

while watching julie & julia (which was great by the way) i found myself with tears streaming down my face thinking about how he would have loved to watch this movie with me.

there's a moment in the movie when julia childs (played by Meryl Streep) and her hubby are jumping up & down over the JOY of getting her cookbook published.

you see, for those of you who knew my dad you know how he was happiest in the kitchen. it was HIS space, his love, his passion. but mostly it was his life. other than his family, food was his thing.

and boy, was he good. like reallllly realllly good.

i had an aha moment (yes, an oprah-aha-moment) where i stood in the kitchen last week while making a delicious chicken and thought, these were the moments he would tell me about. those moments where nothing else matters in life but the masterpiece you create with the people you love most. that was his life.

cooking changed my dads life. he use to tell me when making something amazing, it's all about taking chances. just like in life. you don't always need to read the directions, or follow what people say.... but rather lead with your heart.... and everything always turns out okay. same as a recipe. (not including the times my kitchen has had some smoke, or some smell that didn't seem right). but mainly, it was about the journey in getting where we want to be rather than the end result. it's supposed to be fun.

my dad loved to teach people his passion. and that thing he did called cooking, changed my life too.

i will never look at food the same, i will never taste food the same, and whenever i cook... i will think of him.

there are days i feel like HE is cooking with me, one recipe at a time. and one day, hopefully.... i will cook like him. i want to share his stories that he use to share with us while showing us how to make the perfect filet, or the perfect pistachio encrusted halibut, or the perfect shrimp boil.

for almost 24 years i got to watch my dad shine in the kitchen. i was the lucky one. i learned the most lessons from his daily ramblings of "what should we cook today?"

i was and forever will be blessed by this.

so today, my post is for him. after watching this movie it made me reflect on how HE was the "julia child" of today. he loved food & cooking more than life itself.

i'm so glad i was around for those spectacular, perfect meals.

i miss my chef.

XO